Heaving-plug.



PATENTED JAN. 3, 1905.

G. W. BARNES. HEAVING PLUG.

APPLIUATION FILED DEG. 1, 190s.

- UNITED STATES Patented January 3, 1905.

PATENT OEEIcE.

GEORGE W. BARNES, OF BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- HALF TO HENRY D. MCCOY, OF BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA.

HEAVlNG-PLUG.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. '7'79,388, dated January 3, 1905.

I Application filed December 1, 1903. Serial No. 183,356.

To rtZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE WV. BARNES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bakersfield, in the county of Kern and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Heaving-Plugs, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to oil-well construction, and more especially to means for closing the casing at any depth, so as to prevent sand from heaving intothe said casing. Great difficulties are frequently experienced in sinking well-tubes from the heaving of sand into such tubes, and it has been the practice to closesuch tubes with wooden plugs in order to exclude the sand and permit the tube to continue its downward movement. Often these wooden plugs will not stand the pressure of the sand from below and are forced up the tube.

My invention includes a plug so constructed that when placed in the pipe it will be held therein with increasing tenacity as the pressure from below increases.

A further improvement consists in making my plug of metal, preferably cast-iron, on account of the much greater ease with which said plug can be removed incase it is necessary to sink deeper. With the wooden plug generally used several days are required for boring it out, and then very often the drill going down through it splits the wooden plug and results in the splitting of the casing by the wedging action of the split plug against the casing itself. a

An embodiment of my invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved plug. Fig. 2 is a vertical section showing my tube in position in the casing. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on line 00 w of Fig. 2 looking downwardly. Fig. 4: is a perspective view of the plug with the external segments far as it has been forced downwardly and would indicate the point where the ordinary wooden plug would be applied. If this end of the casing has reached a point where heaving sand commences to enter it, I lower into the casing thercast-iron plug 2. (Shown in Fig. l.) I attach to such plug a rope or small wire cable 3, as shown, which need be only strong enough to sustain the weight and which may be weakened near its point of attachment in order that it may be broken there by an upward pull, since it is intended to leave the plug in the casing, or rather since it is not intended to draw it up. The plug 2 is preferably hollow, as shown, but has a closed top and a cone-shaped or tapering upper portion 4:. The main body of the plug substantially fits the casing, and it is to be noted that as casings vary in diameter different sizes of plugs will naturally be supplied, as each plug is used butonce. The plugis cheaply constructed of cast-iron. Around the tapering portion of the plug are fitted movable segments 5, of cast-iron, case-hardened, so as to be harder than the adjacent soft-iron tube, and internally concd, so as to bear around and against the cone-shaped portion of the plug. Pins 6, projecting from the plug, enter slots 7 in the external segments and form guides and stops for the relative movements. The external surfaces of the segments are ribbed or serrated, toothed, or otherwise formed with u pward ly-acting cutting or penetrating members 8, and it will be evident that if an upward pressure be exerted upon the plug the case-hardened segments will be forced upwardly and outwardly and that their external teeth, ribs, or projections will be caused to bite into the casing, and so stop the upward movement of the entire plug in the casing, according to the amount and extent of the pressure. This pressure is exerted from below by'the sand or gas to which the under face of the plug is exposed. The suspension line or cable by which the plug was lowered is broken near the plug by an upward strain exerted from the surface, leaving the plug in the casing, and thereafter any pressure from below only causes the plug to bite more firmly into the said casing, and so shuts off the sand from the interior of the casing. I now have a casing closed at or near its lower end and which can therefore be forced on downwardly Without obstruction by the causes hereinbefore set forth; but when the casing has passed through the sand and the drilling-tools are brought into operation it is necessary to remove the plug from the casing in order to deepen the well. This is done by destroying and breaking into small fragments the entire plug, the operator sending down a drill-bit for that purpose, which easily breaks up the brittle material of the plug. Possibly in deepening the well another casing of smaller size must be forced down through the one already in place, and in this case another plug of a size to fit the last casing can, if necessary, be sent down, held, and destroyed in the manner just described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A heaving-plug comprising a hollow externally-tapered shell, and internally-tapered curvilinear segments iitting and substantially surrounding said shell and loosely connected thereto, said segments having exterior projections for engaging a casing.

2. A heaving-plug comprising a body having a lower cylindrical portion adapted to substantially fit a well-casing, an upper coned or tapered portion, and segments fitting the tapered portion and loosely connected thereto, and having exterior projections for engaging said casing.

3. A heaving-plug comprising a hollow shell having an open bottom and a tapered portion, and toothed segments fitting and substantially surrounding the tapered portion externally.

4. A hollow heaving-plug closed at the top and open at the bottom, the lower part of said plug being cylindrical and the upper part tapering, and curvilinear toothed segments substantially surrounding the tapered portion and loosely connected thereto.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature, in presence of two Witnesses, this 19th day of N ovember, 1903.

GEORGE WV. BARNES.

Witnesses:

GEoRGn HAY, J. B. BATZ. 

